IF THE DRAG LINK WERE TO SEPARATE FROM THE PITMAN ARM, THE DRIVER WOULD NOT HAVE DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE POSSIBLY CAUSING A CRASH.
Remedy & full details
DEALERS WILL REPLACE AND PROPERLY TIGHTEN THE CASTLE NUT THAT RETAINS THE STEERING DRAG LINK TO THE PITMAN ARM. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 19, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT WORKHORSE AT 1-877-946-7731 OR AT HTTP://WWW.NAVISTAR.COM.
WORKHORSE IS RECALLING 5,606 MY 2006-2008 W42 COMMERCIAL CHASSIS AND W18 RECREATIONAL VEHICLE CHASSIS. THE CASTLE NUT THAT RETAINS THE STEERING DRAG LINK TO THE PITMAN ARM MAY HAVE BEEN IMPROPERLY TORQUED DURING ASSEMBLY. THE IMPROPER TORQUE MAY HAVE DAMAGED THE CASTLE NUT AND COMPROMISED THE INTEGRITY OF THE CONNECTION.
Complaint volume
Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.
What owners reported happened
0Crashes
0Fires
0Injuries
0Deaths
Across 3 complaints. Severity Index 0.00.
Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.
What owners report most
Steering — 2 reports
Electrical System — 1 reports
What to do
Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.
Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.
Questions
Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?
Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.
Do I pay for recall repairs?
No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.
Why are there complaints but no recalls?
Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.
From the same data desk
Independent sites, same maintainer, same open-data standards.